Inevitable
by ladypredator
Summary: While some confrontations may be inevitable, the outcome may not be


The explosion was going to happen, sooner or later. Lt. Scott wasn't surprised by that.

The initiating argument had been extremely stupid, but that, too, hadn't been a surprise. When Volker and one of the younger soldiers had accidentally set off what turned out to be an Ancient, industrial-sized, vacuum cleaner – a vacuum cleaner that immediately attempted to clean out Volker's internal organs – it was hardly going to be a surprise that after Dr. Rush figured out how to stop the thing, the acerbic scientist was going to give someone an earful about messing with things they didn't understand.

Of course, Rush chose to do it in the morning meeting, aiming himself primarily at Colonel Young. In all fairness, Scott couldn't disagree. The Doctor had warned the Colonel before about people going around tinkering with Destiny's systems and Volker had nearly gotten vacuumed from the inside-out, as Eli rather too-gleefully pointed out. The problem was that Rush was 1) yelling at Young; 2) raking the rest of them with those big, burning eyes of his, and 3) that no matter how right he was, Rush always pissed Sg. Ron Greer off, period, end of discussion.

Greer jumped to Young's defense, sneering at Rush in his angry fashion.

Rush tossed Greer a disdainful glare, like he was something that had crawled out from under a rock, and then proceeded to completely ignore him.

Greer didn't like being ignored, especially in Rush's characteristically arrogant way.

So he just had to get Rush's attention.

Scott had grabbed for Greer's arm, trying to warn him to stop, to stave off what was coming, even though he knew it was inevitable. If Telford had been enough to get Greer to punch out a superior office, Rush was going to get even more of a response. Personally, Scott would take Rush over Telford any day of the week. If you actually listened to what Rush said, he was almost invariably – if painfully pragmatically – right and as long as you let him alone to work, he wouldn't bother you unless you got in his way. Also, since Rush was a brilliant genius and so far ahead of the rest of them he could run mental circles around them, his assumption that he was smarter than all of them was relatively honest, if not exactly modest or likeable.

It was also just the kind of thing to set Greer off.

So the situation degenerated rapidly. Greer shouted. Rush spoke more and more softly, the warning buried in the thickening of his Scottish accent. Greer yelled. Rush spoke like he was talking to a child throwing a temper tantrum. Nothing could've infuriated Greer more and Scott knew Rush knew that. Young knew it too, as he and Scott shared quick glances of alarm and approached from opposite sides ready to grab Greer before he did something they'd all regret.

Greer moved faster than they had expected.

Rush moved even faster.

Before anyone had a chance to do more than gasp in shock, Greer was on the floor with the blade of his own knife pressed against his throat. Rush was leaning over him, knee pressed painfully into Greer's belly, his other hand pinning one of Greer's wrists behind his back.

Everything froze; no one moved. Long, shaggy chunks of hair framed Rush's face, hiding his eyes, his expression, from everyone but Greer. From Greer's wide-eyed expression, Scott knew that whatever he saw in Rush's face, it was something Scott himself never wanted to see.

Then just as suddenly as he'd taken Greer down, Rush leapt up to his feet, flipped the knife in his hand with the ease of expertise, and palmed it towards Young. Scott dropped down to his knees on the floor beside Greer, restraining him with a hand on his chest while Young gingerly took the knife from Rush.

The scientist attempted to push his bangs back out of his eyes as he strode towards the door, running his hand through his hair, though strands immediately fell back downward to frame those striking eyes of his as he turned and paused for a second.

He looked down towards Greer and said calmly, evenly, "You wouldn't survive 5 minutes where I grew up, Sergeant."

Then he turned on his heels and left them in shocked, open-mouthed silence.

Greer never challenged Rush again.


End file.
